At 2022 Daytona 500, NASCAR’s Next Gen cars getting positive reviews … for the most part

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — As Daytona Speedweeks (OK, it’s actually Speedweek now) have reached full speed leading into Thursday night’s dual 150-mile qualifying races, everyone in the Cup Series garage seems to agree that NASCAR’s newly christened rides, the so-called Next Gen machines, were needed. OK, they agree for the most part.

Everyone also concurs, for the most part, that the new cars look pretty cool. They are in agreement, for the most part, that their new Camaros, Mustangs and Camrys are more durable than their predecessors and that they put more control into the gloves of the drivers and less inside the laptops of the engineers.

The inhabitants of the paddock are even willing to admit, for the most part, that the modernization that has come with these cars was way overdue. Like, decades overdue. The Gen 6 machines that were sent to the racing retirement village at the end of the 2021 season were, at their metal cores, not much different from Gen 2, dating back to 1967.

But as the planet’s premier stock car racing series has emerged from its admittedly restless winter hibernation, there is no “for the most part” attached to one aspect of the Next Gen debut discussion.

“It’s just, well, it’s kind of weird, man,” explained Michael McDowell, who will race Sunday as the defending Daytona 500 champion, one year removed from one of the biggest upset victories in the 64-year history of the Great American Race, driving for midtier Front Row Motorsports.

“Don’t misunderstand me. I think these cars are great. As a driver for a team that has never had the budget or resources of the big guys, I am for the effort to cut costs and maybe level the playing the field a little. But when you walk into the race shop or even into the garage this week, the vibe is just, yeah, it’s just different.”

Another Daytona 500 champion was a…